President Mulino Speaks Directly to the People: “Panama is Not Going to Fail… and Neither Am I”

In his talk this Thursday, President José Raúl Mulino spoke out against those he believes are trying to make his administration fail.   “There are people who would like the country to fail so that I will fail. But the country has not failed. And neither have I.”  Mulino emphasized the phrase when addressing the issue most felt on the street: the economy , which some celebrate because it grows in numbers, but which millions don’t feel in their wallets. 

The president acknowledged that international organizations highlight Panama for its growth, but he also reminded everyone of the other half of the story: the inequalities that have remained unresolved for decades .  “Here you have skyscrapers on one side and poverty 10 minutes away. And that doesn’t get fixed overnight.”  And he finished with another line that made it clear that this didn’t start yesterday: “Panama 2 didn’t begin last month.”

Education, Technical Careers and the Famous ‘Chance’

In that regard, the president emphasized three pillars that, according to him, are the key to change, to closing that inequality gap: 

• Strong public education
• Technical careers that lead to real jobs
• Youth with access to financing to start businesses and enter the formal economy

Mulino asked to leave behind “the birds of ill omen”.  When questioned about a group of legislators visiting Taiwan, Mulino said: “I hope they enjoy Taiwan, but they don’t have the legal authority to discuss investment matters. That’s handled by the Executive Branch with other countries, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”  Rumors of Chinese companies in ports: “That doesn’t exist”  Regarding alleged bids from Chinese companies to operate ports in Panama—something that even former President Donald Trump reportedly warned about—Mulino was curt:  “That doesn’t exist. There’s no open case. I don’t know who invented that news.” 

According to the president, there are no Chinese companies bidding for ports, nor even a procedure underway to consider such a thing.  They’re reducing milk for school lunches: “I’m not going to let them hurt Panamanian producers.”  And, regarding the issue of the Meduca tender and the reduction in the volume of milk for the school cup program, Mulino indicated that “I am not going to allow that tender to affect Panamanian producers.”  He stated that he requested talks with the Minister of Education, Lucy Molinar, to review the contract and understand why the amount was reduced.  He recalled that his government has curbed imports that were harming agriculture, and that it will do the same again if necessary:  “I am not going to leave national production unprotected.”